Author, singer, inspirational speaker, proud owner of a van she calls “Go Go Gadget,” oh and did I mention she’s Ms. Wheelchair USA 2012? Tasha Schuh, from Ellsworth, Wisconsin, is one of the most glowing, driven women you’ll ever meet.

But she wasn’t always this way. After breaking her neck backstage during a theater production in high school (she was a singer herself), she stepped into an open trap door she didn’t know was behind her, and her life was changed forever. She fell 16 feet, hitting the cement floor and breaking her C5 vertebrae on impact.

But after a year of depression, she started to see a good life with paralysis was still possible, and began to look forward to heal – a common saying that was soon to become her mantra.

Why she’s fearless

After 6 months in rehab, worried what life held in store for her, worried if she would ever get married, she began to push forward; not dwelling on what she had lost, but instead on what she still had. Education was what she was focused on too. She graduated high school with her class, then went to Winona State University and graduated with a degree in Communication Studies and Music (making sure not to stray away from her first love).

Then she decided to go back to school one more time to attend Maranatha College, where she received a degree in Theology. Christianity played a big part in Tasha’s mental recovery post-injury, and is a focal point of her present-day life, especially in her speaking career, which is what she’s best known for.

Tasha speaks at schools, businesses, organizations and churches to spread her message, and it’s a good one too. The message – there is always room to hope. And she wrote a book to carry her message even further, “My Last Step Backwards,” which is available on Amazon.

And Tasha has an even bigger “speaking engagement” so to speak this August – she’s marrying her sweetheart Doug Michaels, a weatherman from WQOW/Eau Claire, WI. “I can have children; we can have a family!” she told onlookers when she got engaged. How cute is that? Tasha from early on always wanted her own family.

And after they get married in August, they have an even bigger goal – to begin a speaking tour together. Tasha and Doug, who met on an online dating site, were drawn to one another because of their faith, and so romantic – they were engaged 6 months after meeting. They plan to speak about God, and the challenges they face as a couple.

Tasha without question still has her bad days, but what makes her so amazing is how she bounces back with a smile and an aura of positivity that really just needs to be bottled and sold. You got to love anyone with that kind of smile anyways. I mean, just look at her – she’s adorable. You go girl.

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SPINALpedia is a social mentoring network and video archive that allows the spinal cord injury community to motivate each other with the knowledge and triumphs gained from our individual experiences.

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We envision a society where people with paralysis are no longer isolated and can return to being active members of the community. In order to realize that goal, we need to unite our community and find strength in the power of our experiences.